Gamers left wondering about what Nintendo‘s upcoming Wii U console can do have some new facts to mull over thanks to a patent filing for the device’s tablet-like controller (via Joystiq). While most of the components were already revealed, things like the touchscreen and gyroscope, there is also mention of a magnetometer and flash memory in the documentation.
The most common usage for a magnetometer that most of us are familiar with would be a cellphone’s compass. Such a component could also potentially be used to pick up non-touch gestures made in close proximity to the device, though a magnet would need to be worn on your hand to take advantage of that.
As for the flash memory, it’s there and it’s separate from the CPU’s dedicated memory. No specifics are offered on what purpose it will serve, though it’s not surprising to see it included. The tablet is presumably going to be sending and receiving plenty of data, and having that added space to work with ought to be helpful.
You can check out the filing for yourself online.
